Jeff Schudel: Go beyond the numbers when evaluating Pat Shurmur

FILE - In this Aug. 5, 2010 file photo, St. Louis Rams offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur jogs with members of the Rams during NFL football training camp at the team's training facility in St. Louis. The Cleveland Browns could have a new coach in hours. The team is in talks with Shurmur to succeed Eric Mangini and become its fifth coach since 1999. Shurmur's agent, Bob LaMonte, arrived at the Browns' headquarters on Thursday, Jan. 13, 2011 in Berea, Ohio, to negotiate with team president Mike Holmgren, who just happens to be one of his clients. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File

Mike Holmgren did not wake up the morning after the season ended with a 41-9 loss to the Steelers, look into his cup of coffee for answers and ask the rising steam, "Now what should I do?"

Pat Shurmur must have been on Holmgren's short list before the Browns president decided to fire Eric Mangini. Holmgren had to be thinking about coaches he thought would do better even as the Browns were losing six of their final eight games and each of their last four.

Fans are uneasy about Shurmur as head coach because he was the Rams' offensive coordinator for only two years. In those two years, the Rams were not the greatest show on turf, as they were a decade earlier. The Rams' offense ranked 29th in 2009 and only three notches better this past season.

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Can't we assume Holmgren knew of those numbers and looked beyond them? A head coach is more an administrator than a hands-on coach, so Holmgren must have figured, after talking to his good buddy Andy Reid, that the job won't be too big for Shurmur. Shurmur was an assistant coach with the Eagles for 10 years under Reid. He was the Eagles' quarterbacks coach for seven years.

Sheldon Brown, now a Browns cornerback, was a rookie with the Eagles in 2002 when Shurmur was named quarterbacks coach. By then, Donovan McNabb had already played three years.

"I knew (Shurmur) demanded a lot of respect, for one," Brown said Thursday. "Donovan McNabb was the guy that was already established there, and Donovan had the utmost respect for Coach Shurmur. He is a sharp guy. He always took notes in meetings, and he was one of those guys that Andy could depend on to get the guys ready to play, motivate and do well on game days. That's what you are looking for when you are looking for a coach.

"He kind of reminds me of a guy like (Ravens coach) John Harbaugh, who took a lot of notes, never had enough knowledge and always wanted to learn more. I had a lot of respect for him. He is a hard-working guy, and I think he will do well."

McNabb praised Shurmur in a quote forwarded by the Redskins. We can assume McNabb has a better read on Shurmur than anyone in the media or in the stands.

"I think it is a great choice for the Cleveland Browns," McNabb said. "Pat Shurmur is a hard-working, dedicated and determined individual who demands perfection from all his players. The team will love playing for him."

The head coach has to be someone who can relate to and motivate the players. If McNabb says the Browns will love playing for Shurmur, fans certainly should give him a chance.

Most fans unhappy with hiring Shurmur wanted a coach with head coaching experience in the NFL. There are seven of those in the league now, including John Fox, who was hired to coach the Broncos on Thursday.

Only two of the other six took their teams to the playoffs this year -- Bill Belichick in New England and Pete Carroll in Seattle.

Ten of the 12 teams in the playoffs at the start of the postseason had no NFL head coaching experience before team owners/general managers had enough faith to give them a chance.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is in the playoffs for the third time in four years. He was the Vikings' defensive coordinator just one season before he was hired in Pittsburgh. Two years ago, he became the youngest coach in NFL history to win a Super Bowl.

Harbaugh, referred to earlier by Sheldon Brown, was the Eagles' special teams coach for seven seasons. He was their secondary coach in 2007 and the next year, he was the Ravens' head coach. The Ravens made the playoffs each year under Harbaugh has been their coach.